Congressional Testimony

Chairman Chabot, Ranking Member Ackerman, distinguished members of the Committee:

Thank you for inviting me to testify today on the U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID) role in supporting the Administration's policy to achieve comprehensive regional peace in the Middle East that includes a negotiated Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement based on the core concept of two states for two peoples.

Chairman Smith, Chairman Royce, Ranking Members Payne and Sherman, and distinguished members of the Committees, thank you for this opportunity to testify before you today on the humanitarian crisis in Somalia. I will give you a brief update on the current situation and the U.S. government's efforts to help the more than 2.85 million people in need in Somalia, despite significant challenges on the ground.

Good afternoon Chairman Smith, Ranking Member Payne, and members of the subcommittee. Thank you for inviting me to speak with you about foreign assistance support to Sudan. I want to also thank Ambassador Princeton Lyman for his dedicated efforts in serving as the current Special Envoy for Sudan, and in particular for helping to facilitate ongoing discussions between both CPA parties on critical outstanding issues. He has been an important advocate and partner for USAID in Sudan. We have worked to ensure that diplomatic and development efforts are coordinated to best accomplish U.S.

Good afternoon Chairman Smith, Ranking Member Payne, and members of the subcommittee. Thank you for inviting me to speak with you about foreign assistance support to Sudan. I want to also thank Ambassador Princeton Lyman for his dedicated efforts in serving as the current Special Envoy for Sudan, and in particular for helping to facilitate ongoing discussions between both CPA parties on critical outstanding issues. He has been an important advocate and partner for USAID in Sudan. We have worked to ensure that diplomatic and development efforts are coordinated to best accomplish U.S.

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Isakson, and members of the Committee, thank you for this opportunity to testify before you today on Côte d'Ivoire. I will give you a brief update on the current situation in Côte d'Ivoire, the U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID) efforts in the aftermath of post-election violence, and what capabilities we have that might be brought to bear in the future.

Throughout my time with the Agency, I have come to discover that USAID's struggles were rooted in our processes, not in our people. For years, USAID had been operating without a central budget function or a policy shop. Onerous reporting requirements from Washington kept many of our officers behind their desks and demanded that our Missions focus on outputs at the expense of outcomes. Those experiences, and the vital feedback of our staff, led me to institute one of the most sweeping sets of reforms USAID has undergone in its history-which we call “USAID Forward” – and which is an early outcome of Secretary Clinton's Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review. This ambitious reform effort is changing the way USAID does business – with new partnerships, an emphasis on innovation, and a relentless focus on results.

Good afternoon Chairman Coons, Senator Isakson, and members of the Subcommittee. Thank you for inviting me to speak with you. Congratulations to Chairman Coons who is no stranger to Africa, and particularly east Africa which I have the great pleasure of working on regularly. Senator Isakson, we are glad that you remain the ranking member and a great supporter of the State Department and USAID in Africa.

Chairman Burton, Ranking Member Meeks, and members of the Subcommittee:

Thank you for inviting me to appear before you today. I appreciate the opportunity to discuss USAID's successes in Europe and Eurasia, the persistent development challenges, and our future direction in a period of resource constraints.

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: Thank you for the invitation to testify today. I am grateful for the Committee's interest in the U.S. Agency for International Development's priorities in Latin America and the Caribbean and pleased to have this opportunity to discuss the Obama Administration's development policy in the Americas. As always, I am eager to hear your advice and counsel as well.